OTTAWA - Folks buried under a pile of old electronics are bound to get a charge out of this.

A New Democrat MP is proposing legislation that would require cellphone-makers to create a standardized universal cellphone charger for all new mobile phones sold in Canada.

Glenn Thibeault, the NDP's consumer protection critic, says it's costly, wasteful and environmentally unsound that most people end up storing or discarding perfectly good chargers every time they buy a new cellphone.

In 2009, 14 mobile phone manufacturers — including Apple, Research in Motion, Motorola, and Nokia — signed off on a memorandum of understanding making their devices compatible with a common European Union standard.

Thibeault says that shows manufacturers are willing to co-operate with what he calls a "simple and cost-effective change that will have positive consequences for the environment, reduce e-waste, and help save consumers money."

His proposal may get short-circuited, however — private member's bills, particularly those tabled by opposition MPs, rarely make it into law.